First Steps
by Miss Meggie
Summary: Written for the leverageland spin off challenge. Hope Granger finally has her own life, How will Eliot Spencer fit into that? Read & find out. I own nothing but the OCS!
1. Chapter 1

Hope Granger has waited her entire life for this, waited to have the guts and the means to leave Adrian. It's here and she's a little nauseous. She tells herself that its excitement not fear. She adjusts her white tank top just have something to nitpick at.

She watches Albie owner of the town bar and her mother's boss loads her final box.

She hugs her mother and steels herself not cry. Though the familiar smell of Chanel no. 5 almost derails the effort.

"Call me the minute you get in." She commands steepling her hands near mouth as though she's praying. Hope nods. "I will."

She settled into the cab of her truck when her sister finally gathers her nerve. She rolls her eyes as Grace fastens the seat belt for her. She hugs the brunette girl her kissing her cheek despite the knowledge it will make the younger girl shy away.

"You're going to be Fine Gigi. You always are." Hope puts on a brave smile. Yup the pukey feeling is more fear than joy. She manages to make Grace relax enough to release her though. "Bye Brat. Call me if you need help with your English homework."

"Totally. Can you see over the chair and boxes?" Hope glances into the rearview, to see her wheelchair. "Yup." "Alright. I love you bye sister."

"Love you too. Bye Gracie Face."

"Mama?" Hope looks over her mother has a look on her face she can't quite decipher. Happiness, Sorrow, Fear, Its all there in her brown eyed gaze.

"Bye, Darlin." Collette blew her a kiss.

"Bye Mama." She set the car in gear.

She watches her family grow tinier and tinier in her rearview waving amid the west Texas dust her truck had kicked up.

She wouldn't miss this tiny dusty town. With it's 159 residents and faded route 66 fame. However, she would miss those two women.

She turns up the alternative country station out of Amarillo. _My Hometown by Charlie Robinson _flows out. Wind blows through the rolled down windows of her 1955 Chevy step side pickup. She brushes Auburn locks behind her ear and sings along with the radio softly. The terror is ebbing and she's at peace for now.

-/-/-/-/-

She makes it into the city after a two day drive. It's evening and the colors of fall greet her in a way not seen in Texas. She finds her apartment building is rather upscale. It has a door man even. She grins, that makes her feel fancy.

It turns out her landlord lives three floors above her, a young black man named Alec Hardison. It's small but clean and handicap accessible which is all she really needs.

She doesn't have many things so it doesn't take the movers long.

That night she sits in her kitchen eating Ramen noodles which she fixed herself. Its stupid she knows but despite being twenty years old already. It makes her feel grown up.

-/-/-/-

Freshman orientation is a little overwhelming, but a girl wearing a mini skirt adorned with safety pins a black slashed up tank top sits down beside her. Hope tries very hard not to stare but its hard. The girl has on more makeup than a drag queen with a Mary Kay addiction, along with jet black and neon pink streaked hair. There is a stud in her chin that makes Hope's face ache in sympathy. They don't make them like that where she's from.

"Trysta Cades." she offers a ring bedecked hand. "Hope Granger." She supplies shaking the proffered hand. She has lunch with Trysta and promptly decides she adores her. They talk for what seems to be forever, so she's late for her therapy consultation at Branley Athletics. Still being late doesn't change her country girl tendency to dawdle.

She's rolling up to the door at the same time as a long haired stockily built man is walking to it. To her surprise he holds open the door and actually looks her in the eye as he speaks.

"There ya go Miss."

"Thank you."

"Not from around here are you Darlin'? he grins and Hope suddenly realizes he's very good looking.

She finds her voice. "How'd you guess?"

"That Texas twang has a very distinctive sound." She grins back at him.

"You don't sound Bostonian either."

"I'm not." He shrugs loping calmly next to her as she wheels toward the front desk. "I'm Hope by the way." she says suddenly realizing she's had a whole conversation with a nameless man. "Eliot Spencer."

The receptionist appears. "May I help you?"

"I have a consultation with a Drew Ashman."

"Ah, good kid. A little flirty but good." Eliot tells her.

"Really, good to know. You aren't the least bit curious why the cripple would come to the gym are you?"

"You shouldn't call yourself that, and no because I'm pretty sure I know already."

"Ok, I'm curious. " she laughs lightly. Brown eyes shining.

"You have spastic Cerebral Palsy and are here for maintenance therapy.

Her eyes narrow. "Are you a creeper? Did you read my file." she half teases.

"Nope. It's just the way you hold your body is very…"

"Let me guess? Distinctive."

"You could say that yes."

-/-/-/-

Hope isn't sure what to make of Eliot but some part of her can't help but like him. They work out beside each other. Eliot making use of the treadmill as Hope tries to breathe through her stretches and track conversation with Drew. Who's really sweet but flirty as Eliot predicted. He's lithely built with brown hair and eyes. He's a tad effeminate and any doubts she has about his sexuality are put to rest when he mentions he's seen _Wicked_ five times. No straight man willingly does that.

-/-/-/-

"You're new in town. If you ever want a good drink. Check out Mcrory's Bar." Eliot says. She looks down and checks her cell _Missed call: Colt/Dad. _She so did not want to open that can of worms today.

"I just might do that sometime."

-/-/-/-

She goes to the bar a week later and finds Eliot sitting amongst a group of people. She rolls the bar which is to tall for her to order at. So she sits at a table and waits for a waitress too come by. She wait's a bit the bar is hopping. Eliot comes up behind her and sits a drink in front of her.

"You look like a vodka and cranberry kinda girl." he grabs a chair from a nearby table turns it backward and sits down beside her.

She laughs. "Don't tell me I gave a tell just by sitting here…"

"No, that one was all wild guess and old bartender instinct."

"Hm, you'd get along with my Mom then. She's the best waitress and bartender at Albie's."

"Hardison is still updating the bar. It was built before the ADA."

"You actually know what that is?"

"I'm a vet. Some of my friends are disabled. So I notice it more if a building isn't up to standard."

A blonde girl came over and plopped down in the floor next Eliot's chair.

"What's wrong with you." She asks.

"Parker!" Eliot admonishes. "No its fine a prefer honest curiosity to political correctness and staring any day. I have cerebral palsy and can't walk."

"My boyfriend is your landlord." The a girl adds apropos of nothing. She wondered if all of Eliot's friends were this odd.

"The others want to meet you. Eliot doesn't make friends often." Eliot groaned.

"Okay." well it looked like she was about to find out. She was beginning to wonder what the hell she'd roped herself into. Eliot seemed alright and he was hot. She'd go with it for now.


	2. Episode 2: Hope Among The Ruin

**AN: THIS IS SET A FEW MONTHS AFTER THE PILOT. **

**EPISODE 2: Hope Among The Ruin**

* * *

><p>Hope Granger thought moving to the city would change her life and make it easier. Bigger towns means more open minded people and better resources but she thinks maybe after living through today she was wrong. She rolls into Mcrory's bar in down town Boston for a much needed drink.<p>

The bar was built before the ADA laws so it's too tall for her to order at from her chair. She rolls up to her typical table and waits for Cora to come by. She doesn't have to wait long before someone steps up behind her and sits a drink before her.

"I didn't order…"

Eliot shrugged. "It looked like a whiskey kinda day. What happened?" He asked. Flicking back his long hair he pulls out a chair and sits beside her. "Talk he prompts crossing his arms.

The rest of the team wonders over to cluster around the table. Parker sits on the floor at her feet, Hardison, on her right, Sophie sits across from her, Nate stands on her left near Eliot.

"Well you remember the guy I mentioned from my lit class? Caleb Hayden?"

Eliot grunted and she took that to mean yes. "I asked him out."

"Good for you." Said Sophie. Touching her arm lightly.

"He said no." she sipped her drink wincing at the burn of it going down. "Gave me the old it's totally not because you're crippled insert lame excuse here but we both know it really is spiel."

"Douche bag." Eliot spit angrily.

Hope smirked. "I'm used to it Eliot."

"Not the point."

"Oh but my day just kept getting better. I applied at Sonny's sandwich shop. A 16 year old kid got the job and I waitressed in mom's bar in Adrian since I was fourteen. I have more customer service experience they just thought I couldn't do the job. I can make a damn sandwich. And then I got to the grocery store and the bell peppers were too up for me to reach…" She sighed.

"Just one of those days where I realize the world wasn't made for me. Now enough wallowing tell me who y'all took down today."

"Let's run a con." Hardison says from her other side. She eyed the black man beside her. "Uh no thanks, I could just hear it now… Yes Mama I've made friends they're all con men and women and that's why I'm in jail."

"It's what we do mama," Hardison replies. "Help the little guy or girl in this case."

"And we don't get caught…" Nate adds he picks up her discarded whiskey and downs it.

The team seems to come to a silent decision regarding her fate. Hope can't help but be a little apprehensive.

A week later.

Hope watches her best friend's eyes widen comically. "What Trysta? Is Ben Affleck doin' naked jumping jacks behind me?"

She twists around in her seat and sees Eliot loping carelessly toward their study group. He leans down and kisses her on the cheek. "Hi babe,"

"Hey Eliot." She says hoping her confusion will come off as surprise. Pulls a chair from a table over and sits down beside her. He loops an arm around her shoulders. "Eliot you've met Trysta, The girl in the middle is Sammie, the blonde guy on the end is Caleb."

"Eliot, nice to meet you." He shakes Sammie's hand.

Hope watches Eliot jaw clench and eyes zero in suspiciously on Caleb. This could be bad, Eliot is the team muscle and Hope's seen the man work out and that's almost frightening in and of itself. She's never seen him faced with someone he didn't like.

He shakes Caleb's hand squeezing just a little too tight. Hope tries not to smile; she's sipping her drink when he says. "Hi I'm Eliot Hope's boyfriend." She barely manages not to choke on soda. She pointedly ignores Trysta's what did I miss face and shares a knowing smile with Eliot.

"How's Jane Austen?" he asked picking a fry off her plate.

"still dead and boring." Hope replies.

After the study group had left. She watches Eliot eat what's left of her burger. "What was that earlier?" she asks grinning.

"Tell a guy he can't have something that's when he wants it." He mutters around the last bite

She laughs. "I'll turn him down."

"You better. Come with me."

"Alright where? And did you enjoy my lunch dude?" she pays for the food

"You'll see, and mine are better." He replies and begins pushing her toward his truck.

They are standing outside Sonny's Sandwich Shop. Where there is a line around the block. There's not a sandwich maker in sight.

"What did you do?" She accuses.

"Technically I didn't do anything, Hardison hacked their marketing account and sent people coupons and advertised half prices sales for three counties, then Sophie put visine in the kids drinking water. He'll have the shits for week but he'll survive. He's probably in the can. Nate's going to pose as a chain manger that's getting complaints so you should be getting a call from the store manager."

Her cell phone rang. "You're hired Haley. We're getting slammed, can you come in?"

"I'm just down the block and my name's Hope." She pulled her long red hair up and rolled into the place. Eliot watched her take the first order before leaving.

-/-/-/-

Parker caught her leaving work and wrangled an invitation to go grocery shopping with her and Parker's weird enough as it that Hope didn't think to ask her why.

They're strolling down a produce aisle when Parker asked. "You didn't ask for help last night when you shopped? Why?"

"No one was around and when I asked the cashier if the store had personal shoppers they looked at me like I had two heads, I decided I didn't need the stuff that bad and left." She shrugged.

"How many did you need?"

"Two why?"

Parker slips two yellow bell peppers into her pockets.

"Parker! You can't just take them." Hope says exasperated.

"Sure I can I'm a thief." The woman replies.

"I know that but, never mind."

They check out. Hope puts an extra five on the counter. "For the peppers in Blondie's pockets." The checkers scowls. "Don't ask."

-/-/-/-

The next night at Mcrory's.

"You're making a face and don't know what this one means, so tell me." Eliot said swigging his beer.

"You can pretend to be my boyfriend and pull a con to get a me job. Not everyone has that…or no one does really and it seems too big to fix."

"Who says I was pretending," he grins and she rolls her eyes. "If you could do one thing, just make one change what would it be?"

"I'd make the world a more accepting place or at the very least my little corner of it."

"So do it."

Four months later.

She's leaving class when Caleb stops her. "Hope wait!"

She turns "Yeah?"

"You still seeing that guy?"

She smiles. "Maybe, why?"

"You wanna go get coffee?"

"I would but I have an art class to teach, here." She hands him a business card "Be there at 7. You show up and participate. I'll consider coffee."

-/-/-/-/-

Caleb actually beats her to The Be the Change Art Studio.

"This place yours?" he asks as she rolls forward and unlocks the door. "Yep I own it." They step in "How?"

"Uh grants, donations my job, "He looks around and sees a mural of kids with varying disabilities playing together along one wall. "Yours?"

"Yeah took me forever but I like it." He reads I sign she has posted. "No name calling, no bullying, no staring and if anyone says bless your heart too you, kick them in the shins."

He laughs. "No platitudes. Got it."

"Oh! That I'm from a really little town and all the old ladies used that one so I kinda hate that one in particular."

"I misjudged you. I'm sorry." Caleb says.

"You judged me period. That's the problem, and I'm trying to change it. Or at the very least give kids a safe place to be themselves. Apology accepted by the way."

"What do you do here? "

"Art and music therapy, consoling tutoring. You name it we do it. I didn't have anyone to pattern myself after as far as my disability goes, and I didn't have many friends either. My grandmother handed me a paintbrush and I felt normal. Equal for just a moment. My imagination became my best friend and I grew a thick skin. Some kids don't have that, this is me trying to give them that. A safe place. Where they can just be. I can't change the whole world but maybe I can change one person's world Ya know?"

There was a knock at the door. "That's the concessions, be right back."

"I'll get it. You mind if I stay for your class?"

"Go ahead."

She's setting up canvases for the kids when Eliot comes in. "Do not date that living Ken doll." He whispers in her ear.

"Is someone jealous?" she teases laughing when he actually growls in frustration. "I'm being the bigger person Eliot, to change the way people think you have to forgive idiocy."

She is fixing the concession table donated by the grocery store and Sonny's when kiddos flood in.

She rolls to the front of the room. "Alright today is a free for all guys! I don't care how you get the paint on the canvas just do it brushes sponges body parts use whatever you like.

She rolls around watch her students. April a young girl with spina bifida is too busy flirting with Hardison to worry about art.

Tommy a boy with cerebral palsy is trying convince Eliot to use his hair as a paint brush by dipping it in the paint and flicking it on to the canvas.

"I have epic hair man, I can't just –"

"It washes out." She says as she rolls by.

"You're not helping." He replies.

She comes to a stop next to Lilah a five year old girl with Down syndrome who rarely speaks. She understands the world around her just fine though, because her feet are covered in red paint and she's jumping up and down on the canvas. "Show the canvas whose boss Lilah!" she says kissing the top of her head before leaving her with Parker.

She can feel Caleb watching her and she wonders if she's changed the way he sees the world around him. Maybe, maybe not but here in with her art class kiddos she feels she's made a difference and that's what counts.

AN: I don't own anything Leverage related. It belongs to TNT, Dean Devlin, Chris Downey, and John Rodgers. I do own Hope Granger, Trysta McCabe, Caleb Hayden, Sammie, and The art class kids.


End file.
